CENTRE WELLINGTON – Early numbers indicate the township made the right decision in 2024 to take over administration of parking tickets.
But the township cautions it’s early to jump to conclusions.
Data provided by Centre Wellington shows a net income of $5,771 in 2023 when Wellington County administered parking tickets and a net income of $8,543 in 2024 when it started administering its own tickets.
But there were more than administrative changes during that time, township spokesperson Kendra Martin stated.
So, it’s not a direct apples-to-apples comparison.
“Again, it was very difficult for us to compare the year-over-year performance due to the changing dynamic of the service provision,” Martin stated in an email.
In 2021, the township hired Alpha Technology Systems to take care of parking enforcement with a three-year pilot project. Prior to that OPP handled parking enforcement.
A new bylaw was also approved in 2021 limiting on-street parking in downtown Fergus and Elora to three hours, with a few spots designated for 15-minute parking. The bylaw was in effect from May to October.
But the system at the time was for Wellington County to administer the tickets.
So, while 3,516 parking tickets worth $151,610 were issued in 2023, $103,318 of that went to Alpha and $42,521 went to the county, netting the township just $5,771.
In June of 2024 the township began administering its own parking tickets, so no money was paid to the county.
But because the parking bylaw was expanded and in effect year-round, the cost for enforcement also increased.
Township data indicates 4,602 tickets worth $133,747 were issued from May to December of 2024. Alpha was paid $125,204, and the township netted $8,543.
Other changes made in 2024 include:
- some parking lots were repainted in new configurations, adding a few more parking spots (CAO Dan Wilson noted at the Mayor’s Breakfast event on Jan. 29 that six more parking spaces were added to the lot on Provost Lane in Fergus in this way); and
- clearer intersection markings and “no parking” signs were added mainly in Elora to clearly identify where people can and cannot park.
The contract with Alpha expired in December 2024.
According to the new parking strategy approved last fall, the township intends to bring parking enforcement in-house in 2025.
That may require hiring more bylaw enforcement officers, and so the calculation to determine the net gain or loss of parking ticket revenue becomes even more complicated.
The parking strategy also recommends paid parking in the downtowns, but staff have suggested putting that off for another year.
Wilson said at the Sept. 19 committee of the whole meeting that staff could use 2025 to establish bylaws and policies around paid parking and roll them out “in small, gradual steps,” potentially in 2026.
